NMA opposes proposed end to job ad requirements

The News Media Alliance filed comments Dec. 19 opposing the Department of Labor’s and the Department of Homeland Security’s proposals to eliminate the requirement that employers notify U.S. workers of available positions through printed advertisements in Sunday newspapers “in the area of intended employment,” and replace them with website ads.

The departments’ proposals would essentially eliminate a proven medium consumed by more than 130 million adults each week, the print newspaper, that is the only means for some workers to access job information, NMA says.

The Department of Labor and the Department of Homeland Security jointly released the notice of proposed rulemaking on November 10 that would change the way employers must inform U.S. workers about non-agricultural temporary jobs under the H-2B visa programs under the labor certification program. On the same day, the DOL released a nearly identical notice of proposed rulemaking that would change the labor certification program for seeking foreign agricultural workers under the H-2A visa program. 

“Newspapers have long been, and still are, the primary way many millions of U.S. workers receive information, including notices of job opportunities, in their communities,” said News Media Alliance President and CEO David Chavern. “The departments’ proposal to change the job posting requirement to online only is based on faulty conclusions about the reach of newspaper media, as well as the availability of internet access in this country. This proposed change would reduce the availability of job notices for the U.S. worker, particularly in rural and low-income communities where the population does not have broadband internet access at home.”

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